Associated Grocers Strike Leaves Vermont Store Shelves Thin
A number of convenience stores and grocery shops in Vermont are experiencing inventory shortages and shipment delays because a New England labor union is holding firm on its pension plan.
“We certainly hope that this is resolved soon,” said Matt Cota, executive director for the Vermont Retail and Grocers Association, a trade group representing the state’s retail stores.
Teamsters at the Associated Grocers Northeast warehouse in Pembroke, New Hampshire, have been on strike since Monday, according to Teamsters Local 633 Business Agent Keith Judge. According to him, the strike was triggered by a distributor-proposed contract that would strip workers of their pension plan and substitute a 401(k) retirement scheme featuring zero company matching contributions.
Judge noted that formal talks regarding the contract had been underway since June, but union members hit the picket lines this week following a 98% strike authorization vote among the union’s 255 members. Teamsters representatives met with officials from Associated Grocers on Friday, and the company “refused to come into the room and negotiate with us,” Judge said.
A representative from Associated Grocers declined to comment on the strike Friday afternoon.
Associated Grocers Supplies Hundreds of Stores Across the Region
As reported by grocery industry media outlet The Shelby Report, Associated Grocers Northeast supplies more than 600 convenience stores and grocery locations spanning from Pennsylvania to Maine. Cota said the company is “a key supplier” for Vermont’s country markets, community stores and retail grocers.
Associated Grocers runs nine storefronts across Vermont towns and cities, specifically in: Essex Junction, Jericho, Londonderry, Newport, Richmond, Shelburne, Stowe, Waterbury and Woodstock. Representatives from those stores declined to comment on the strike and its impact on their business.
Cota explained that the strike’s impact varies among Vermont grocers depending on the brands, product types, and inventory volumes individual store owners choose to maintain. Stores that rely on Associated Grocers, he said, are seeing delayed deliveries.
“People can understandably be like, ‘Oh, this store used to have, you know, more variety or used to have more choices or whatever,’” Cota said. “These stores are still open, and if they have less stock, it’s really important that the community supports their local stores.”
The Central Dispute
Judge stated that the Teamsters intend to maintain their strike until a fair deal that preserves the pension plan is secured.
“We can work through every other issue that’s on the table, whether it be health insurance, wages, languages that we’re trying to change in the contract,” Judge said. “Our nonstarter and pinch point is, and will always be, removal from the pension.”
